In the annuls of Nottingham Forest's history, 2012 will be remembered simply – as the most dramatic 12 months in the history of the club.
The nation's most creative soap opera script writers would struggle to come up with as many twists and turns in the plot that has been witnessed at the City Ground this year.
Some events have been only too real, with the death of Nigel Doughty, the club's dedicated long-term backer and owner, demonstrating that some things are, in fact, more important than football.
Doughty died on February 4, aged just 54, four months after stepping down as chairman of the club. The subsequent renaming of the club's training ground as the Nigel Doug hty Academy a fitting tribute to a man who poured his heart and soul into the club, along with a considerable amount of cash, in an effort to secure a return to the top flight.
Other events have been utterly surreal, with the arrival of rich Kuwaiti owners followed almost immediately by the sacking of one man, the failure to appoint another and finally the arrival of Sean O'Driscoll, as the man tasked with restoring the fortunes.
Having parted company so swiftly with Steve Cotterill in July, the clubs new owners, the Al Hasawi family, believed they had his replacement virtually in place, in the form of Mick McCarthy, the former Wolves manager.
But, when he backed out of the running, citing fears over potential interference, the club were left back at square one.
It can be argued that, having steered the club away from relegation in the most difficult of circumstances, Cotterill deserved a crack at the job when there was money to spend; when he would have been able to build a squad.
The year began, after all, with Cotterill making one decision that played a pivotal role in Forest's survival. Taking the huge step of selling Wes Morgan to Leicester, along with Patrick Bamford's move to Chelsea, provided the funds Forest needed to bring in new players on loan.
Adlene Guedioura was the pick of that group of loan signings and remains at the club now, while George Elokobi, Scott Wootton and Danny Higginbotham all had a part to play as Forest edged their way away from trouble.
There were low points, as well as high, amid Cotterill's tenure, with the Reds playing more than ten hours of football without scoring a goal at the City Ground at one stage.
But Cotterill's only task was to keep Forest out of League One and, when their form improved from mid-February, starting with a 2-0 win over relegation rivals Coventry, he began to guide them towards that.
A run of two defeats in ten games – a spell in which Forest collected 18 points – took them close to the finishing line and, while a home defeat to Bristol City had the nerves jangling in April, it was followed by a 1-0 success at Peterborough.
When Forest lost a battling game at Reading, it secured their opponents a place in the Premier League – and, despite defeat, Forest also knew they were safe from relegation.
There was even time for Cotterill to secure a 2-0 win over his former club Portsmouth on the final day of the campaign, as they too bowed out of the Championship.
But it was to prove to be the manager's City Ground swansong. He, along with club favourite Frank Clark, who had taken over as chairman when Doughty had stepped down, were both replaced once the Al Hasawi's arrived in a blaze of publicity in the summer.
At a press conference at the City Ground, the Al Hasawi family insisted they viewed Forest as a long-term project, that they had a three to five year plan to establish them as a Premier League club.
The first season, according to Abdulaziz Al Hasawi, would be one of consolidation. If Forest won promotion, then great. If they did not, they would work on achieving that goal next season.
After being rejected by McCarthy, the Al Hasawi's took a refreshing step, by asking the opinion of the Forest players.
And, when asked who they would like to see in charge, they were almost unanimous in their choice – O'Driscoll. Having made a fine impression as part of Cotterill's coaching staff, the players wanted to see him given a crack at the job.
They got exactly what they wished for and, while faced with the task of rebuilding the squad out of the ashes of a difficult summer – which had seen several players leave after seeing their contracts expire – O'Driscoll still managed to inspire an encouraging start to the campaign.
Forest's new-look squad claimed an opening day win over Bristol City and should have won at both Huddersfield and Bolton, following impressive performances – but had to be satisfied with draws.
At that point, an entirely new back four had been assembled, with Sam Hutchinson, Greg Halford, Dan Harding and Danny Collins all having joined the club, with Daniel Ayala to arrive on loan from Norwich soon after.
Forest, in fact, were to remain unbeaten in the Championship until late September, when they suffered a controversial defeat at Leeds.
In O'Driscoll, they appeared to have found a man who ticked all the boxes. He had experience at Championship level, he favoured the right brand of football, he was a thinker with a desire to install a long-term philosophy at the club.
His in-depth pre-match interviews, in which he would frequently offer lengthy insights into his blueprint for the future, suggested Forest were in good hands even if, on the pitch, they could not quite find the consistency they craved.
Forest would often demonstrate their abilities; their potential. But they also had the ability to frustrate.
Their best spell was a four-match run that saw them beat Peterborough, Cardiff and Barnsley, while drawing at Blackpool in between. But Forest are also yet to win three games in a row this season.
And, for all their successes, there were a few disappointments as well, most recently as fine wins over Sheffield Wednesday and Wolves were followed by awful displays at Ipswich and at home to Hull.
A steady success over Burnley was then followed by a poor first-half performance at Brighton and a far worse display at Watford.
On the eve of that game, O'Driscoll had met with the Al Hasawi family and was told promotion was now the goal for the Reds. Having brought in 15 new players, the owners were looking for a more immediate return on their investment.
And, on Boxing Day, even despite a 4-2 win over Leeds United, they took the decision O'Driscoll was not the man to deliver that.
His departure and the subsequent appointment last night of former Glasgow Rangers, Birmingham and Aston Villa boss Alex McLeish ensured 2012 ended the way it had begun, with more drama and intrigue at the City Ground.
